Dealing pot

[wombat2u2004]

IMO, if its a small town and word is out about it anyway - obviously it is, if you weren't fishing for the information and got it anyway - then I don't see how your family member is going to find out you were the one to tip off the police.

Write an anonymous letter stating what you heard and mail it to a detective in the police department. That way, there will be no phone call, and no one will know it was you. You will be sure that way it won't slip later that you were the one to tell.

If they choose to act, they can set up an undercover sting operation. I used to date a sheriff who did undercover narc work. It was simply amazing the things they could pull off, very convincingly. Of course, if your small town is anything like my small town, they may or may not act, depending on many political issues. But that's not your problem, all you can do is report it anonymously and wait and see. Give it some time.

I too, used to buy the "only pot" argument completely. And I still do believe pot is far cry better and safer than harder drugs. However, since my son failed his ninth grade year of high school, was arrested, spent a night in jail with a child molestor and a murderer, was sent to the state reform school for three months, is on supervised probation for a year, and cost us thousands of dollars .... for "ONLY pot" ... I have developed a bit of a harsher view of the drug. Yes, it better than crack or meth. Yes, it relatively physically and psychologically harmless compared to other drugs. Yes, it's organic (unless laced, of course). However ... it is illegal. It is addictive. It is highly unmotivating and has most certainly ruined countless lives and families. Only pot? Sure ... until you watch your only child who just barely turned fourteen years old drug away in shackles and handcuffs, thrown in a van, and driven 300 miles away to a military reform school where he spent 85 days cold, hungry, sick and miserable. For less pot than one could roll one joint with. Only pot?

OMG. That happened to him ???? That is just so unbelievable. Sometimes I feel sorry for the kids when these very hard sentences get handed down.
Peer pressure in schools and such must be great on these kids to try it and all, and then they get caught. Terrible stuff. And it always seems that the wrong ones are caught and punished.
Wom

[Cataholic]

TD- thanks for sharing that story. I cannot imagine the pain.

[Twisterdog]

OMG. That happened to him ???? That is just so unbelievable. Sometimes I feel sorry for the kids when these very hard sentences get handed down.
Peer pressure in schools and such must be great on these kids to try it and all, and then they get caught. Terrible stuff. And it always seems that the wrong ones are caught and punished.
Wom

Yes, it seems that way to me, too. My son was by no means a threat to anyone but himself. He was not dealing or selling anything. He was experimenting. Of course that does not make it legal or right. But everyday I read our local paper and people caugt cooking, using and selling meth get 90 days of probation and a suspended nominal fine. I truly do not understand. Something is very wrong with the system.

[lizbud]

Sounds like that Prosecutor was up for re-election or something. That
would be very unusual to to come down so hard on a child, especially
for a first offense.

[wombat2u2004]

Yes, it seems that way to me, too. My son was by no means a threat to anyone but himself. He was not dealing or selling anything. He was experimenting. Of course that does not make it legal or right. But everyday I read our local paper and people caugt cooking, using and selling meth get 90 days of probation and a suspended nominal fine. I truly do not understand. Something is very wrong with the system.

Was this his first offence ???? I know that question sounds silly, cos he's only fourteen....but still sometimes it isn't at that age.
If it was his first offence, and the fact that this boy is still a minor....was there no way that you could intervene ??? Like perhaps an appeal against such a harsh sentence ????
I just find this matter so disturbing, that the so called law can do this to a minor for just trying a bit of pot. It's so beyond me how these people think.
Wombat

[Daisy and Delilah]

Anxiously waiting for an uppydate. Anything new on this situation?

[tony10k]

Sorry there hasn't been an update. We are still waiting for more information before we proceed. Our family member is completely in love with their SO and we have to be absolutely certain the information is correct before we go to the police. We decided to let the authorities handle this situation but we want to be 100% certain the information we tell them is accurate.

Twisterdog, how awful for your family to experience this. Many prayers for your son and your family. {{{{{Hugs}}}}} for you.

[Daisy and Delilah]

Thanks. Sounds like the best way to handle it. I hope it all works out the right way for everybody

[Twisterdog]

Was this his first offence ???? I know that question sounds silly, cos he's only fourteen....but still sometimes it isn't at that age.
If it was his first offence, and the fact that this boy is still a minor....was there no way that you could intervene ??? Like perhaps an appeal against such a harsh sentence ????
I just find this matter so disturbing, that the so called law can do this to a minor for just trying a bit of pot. It's so beyond me how these people think.
Wombat

Yes, it was his first offense. It was his first offense for ANYthing, actually. He was in school, and had no prior record whatsoever. He had never been in court, never been on probabtion, etc.

Yes, I could have fought it. I called a lot of lawyers for information. I would have gotten a lawyer and fought it from the beginning, but I had no idea I would need one. From everything that everyone had told me, I had nothing to worry about. I heard about a hundred times that the judge would lecture him, give him probabtion and some work restitution to pay off his fine. That was fine with me, I wanted him punished ... just not to the degree he was!

After the sentencing, I started calling lawyers. They told me they would take the case, but by the time we got a trial date in our vastly meth-case-clogged system, chances are he would have served the entire sentence anyway. They also told me she is a moody, vengeful judge, and if I fought it and my son ever had to appear before her again, that he would be pretty much dead in the water. They said she holds a grudge and never forgets.

They also said that the sentence she gave him was within the limits of state law, and even though most of the time the judge does not go for the harshest possible sentence on the first offense ... that they certainly can do it if they choose to.

[wombat2u2004]

Yes, it was his first offense. It was his first offense for ANYthing, actually. He was in school, and had no prior record whatsoever. He had never been in court, never been on probabtion, etc.

Yes, I could have fought it. I called a lot of lawyers for information. I would have gotten a lawyer and fought it from the beginning, but I had no idea I would need one. From everything that everyone had told me, I had nothing to worry about. I heard about a hundred times that the judge would lecture him, give him probabtion and some work restitution to pay off his fine. That was fine with me, I wanted him punished ... just not to the degree he was!

After the sentencing, I started calling lawyers. They told me they would take the case, but by the time we got a trial date in our vastly meth-case-clogged system, chances are he would have served the entire sentence anyway. They also told me she is a moody, vengeful judge, and if I fought it and my son ever had to appear before her again, that he would be pretty much dead in the water. They said she holds a grudge and never forgets.

They also said that the sentence she gave him was within the limits of state law, and even though most of the time the judge does not go for the harshest possible sentence on the first offense ... that they certainly can do it if they choose to.

Hmmmmmmm....yes, we have some judges like that here to.
Well anyway....I just think that's so harsh a sentence for a minor. I hope he comes out of this ok for you. He will certainly learn a lesson from it, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will benefit him in the long run. Not that he needs this, but seeing that he has to put in the time, hopefully he can get something out of it.
Wom

[lizbud]

I still think the sentence was out of line for a first offense. It's a shame
you didn't know anything about that particular judge, or you could have been
advised to retain an attorney before his first court appointment.

As a parent, it's hard enough to convince our children that there is justice
in this world sometimes ,when we don't see it ourselves.